Several days passed before the Aldens returned to the amusement park. The first place they stopped was at the concession stand.
“Oh,” Sheila said, “are you children back again?”
“Yes!” Benny said promptly, hopping up on the stool. “We haven’t been here for two whole days.” He grinned. “I missed my cotton candy.” Then his smile faded. “The last time I was here one of the horses wouldn’t work!”
“What do you mean?” Sheila asked.
“The horse Benny rode wouldn’t go up and down,” Violet explained.
“Oh,” Sheila said, frowning. She turned her back, clearly not wanting to talk anymore.
“Ah,” Frank said, coming in from the back. “If it isn’t Benny Alden.” He scooped lots of cotton candy in a cone. “This is for you!” He held out the gigantic pink frothy cone.
“Oh, my,” Violet said. “Look at that, Benny! Can you eat it all?”
“Just watch me!” Benny said, eagerly reaching for the cone. “Ummmm, it’s good,” he said, licking contentedly.
Jessie laughed. “Come along, Benny.”
Henry said, “Listen to the calliope music.”
Benny smiled, pink foam ringing his mouth. “The merry-go-round! Let’s go for a ride,” he said gleefully.
They walked down the dusty pathway with rides and games on either side of them.
“Don’t you want to try a different ride?” Jessie asked, heading for the swings.
Benny lapped up the rest of his cone and turned in the direction of the swings. “I don’t know,” he said doubtfully.
“We rode them when we first came,” Violet reminded him, “and you thought it was fun.”
“Okay,” Benny said, agreeably.
Henry bought four tickets, lifted Benny up into a swing, and strapped him in. Then he, Jessie, and Violet found swings behind Benny and the ride began.
The swings, attached by chains to a center pole, flew out a little from the ground. Then as the swings picked up speed, they flew faster and faster and higher and higher above the ground.
Violet laughed. “Everything’s a blur.”
The swings spun at a dizzy rate.
Gradually the swings whirled slower and slower as they came to a halt.
Henry jumped down and helped Benny out.
Benny staggered a bit, and his face was white. “That was scary!” He held his head.
“But it’s fun to go so fast, isn’t it, Benny?” Violet asked.
“No,” Benny said in a firm voice. “I like the merry-go-round better. The horses gallop at just the right speed.”
“Then the merry-go-round it will be,” Jessie said. “You can pick out any horse you like.”
Benny’s face lit up. “I want the dapple gray again. He’s my favorite.”
So again they all rode horses and enjoyed the bobbing movement and the loud calliope music.
When they dismounted, however, Violet was surprised to see Benny looking unhappy. Bending down, she asked, “What’s wrong, Benny? Your horse went up and down this time, didn’t it?”
“Yes,” Benny replied seriously, his lower lip trembling, “but someone cut my horse’s side.”
“What?” Henry exclaimed, jumping on the platform to examine Benny’s horse.
Henry ran his hand over the horse’s side. There was a long scratch that reached from the horse’s head to the saddle.
“Hey!” an unshaven man yelled. “If you want to go on the merry-go-round, buy a ticket! Look what happens when I take a couple of days off. Nobody watches whats going on!”
Henry gave the cross man a smile and jumped off.
“You’re right, Benny. The dapple gray has a deep scratch on its side.” Henry studied Benny’s face. “Are you sure that mark wasn’t there before?”
“I’m sure!” Benny said. “I know every inch of my horse!”
The children were quiet as they walked out of the park. Then Henry said, “I’m sorry about your horse, Benny. Who could have done such a thing?”
“I wish we knew,” Violet said. “It’s too bad.”
When they were on their bikes, Jessie asked, “Do you think it could have been scratched on purpose?” When she saw Benny’s sad face, she quickly changed the subject. “You know, we have a chicken to make for dinner tonight. Why don’t we invite—?”
“Joe and Alice?” Violet finished, her eyes sparkling.
“Right you are,” Jessie said.
“Great idea,” Henry said.
“Oh, boy, company,” Benny said and he smiled, forgetting about his scratched horse.
Benny begged to be the one to visit the main house and ask Joe and Alice for dinner.
Jessie said, “Of course, you may!”
When they reached their house, the children set to work to make an extra-special dinner.
Alice had given them permission to pick flowers from her garden, so Violet promised to pick a bouquet of carnations and roses for the centerpiece.
“Good,” Jessie said. She had hoped that Violet would volunteer as she always arranged things so well.
By six o’clock, the chicken was roasting in the oven, almost done. Henry and Benny had set the table and arranged the chairs.
When Joe and Alice came in, Alice smiled. “Oh, how lovely,” she said. “This is a perfect ending to a busy day.”
“Why were you so busy?” Benny asked, looking clean and handsome in his navy blue jogging suit.
Joe sat down at the table and said, “We had a school group tour the museum today.” He paused. “But you must have been busy, too. What have you been up to?”
Jessie laughed. “Fun things, like the amusement park.”
“I don’t think Sheila Arnold likes us,”Benny said suddenly.
“Why do you think that?” Joe asked.
“I don't know,” Benny said. Then after a thoughtful pause he added, “But she frowns a lot.”
“Maybe she just had a bad day,” Joe answered with a smile.
Violet passed the chicken to Alice. “This looks positively delicious,” Alice said. “You even put flowers on the table and lit candles. I can’t believe you did all this!”
“It was fun,” Henry said.
“Yes,” Jessie said. “And we always work a little harder when we know we’re having company.”
The dinner turned out well. The chicken was juicy, the salad crisp, the peas not overcooked, and the mashed potatoes smooth and creamy.
For dessert Jessie and Henry served ice cream with chocolate sauce.
“What rides did you go on today, Benny?” Joe asked, taking a spoonful of ice cream.
Benny wrinkled his nose. “The swings. I don’t like the swings anymore! I felt like I was falling out. I like the merry-go-round best.”
Alice asked, “Do you have a favorite horse?” “Oh, yes,” Benny said. “The dapple gray.”
“Ah,” Joe said, pushing back his empty ice cream dish and sitting back. “You even know the horse’s color.”
“I do,” Benny answered. “Today, though, the dapple gray had a big scratch on its side.” He shook his head sadly. “I was upset.”
Concerned, Alice glanced at Benny. “I don’t blame you. A scratch on a beautiful horse! I wonder how it got there.”
“Probably some careless rider,” said Joe. “You really enjoy the merry-go-round, don’t you? I know you hate to see any of the horses hurt.”
“Yes,” Violet answered. “They’re too beautiful.”
“When Gustav Dentzel first introduced his merry-go-round, did everyone find it as magnificent?” Jessie asked.
“Yes, indeed.” Joe stopped and chuckled. “Well, almost.”
“Almost?” Henry said. “You mean someone didn’t like it?”
“It seems Gustav Dentzel was so proud of his spectacular horses that he took them on a tour,” Joe said. “Once, when he traveled to Richmond, Virginia, the calliope started to play, and little boys, instead of riding his merry-go-round, threw stones at it.”
“Threw stones!” Benny echoed, wide-eyed.
“Yes,” Joe continued. “You see, Dentzel’s music played ‘Marching Through Georgia.’ This was a Yankee war song about General Sherman’s burning of Atlanta.”
“That song was a no-no in the South,”Alice said.
“Believe me, Dentzel learned his lesson and never played music that would offend anyone,” Joe said with a laugh.
“Well, I hope his carousel and calliope music go on forever,” Violet said, smiling.
“So do I,” Henry said. But secretly he was worried. Already one horse didn’t go up and down, and another had been scratched. Was someone hurting these beautiful horses?
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